


One Disaster Less

by mammothluv



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: F/F, Female-Centric, Femslash, Misses Clause Challenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-19
Updated: 2014-12-19
Packaged: 2018-03-02 07:05:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,885
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2803838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mammothluv/pseuds/mammothluv
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Don’t look at me, kids,” she drawls. “I thought zombies were fictional until two minutes ago.”</p><p>“But, you’re a vampire,” Laura replies, emphasis on the ‘vampire’ as if the word somehow translates into ‘zombie expert.’</p>
            </blockquote>





	One Disaster Less

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TheFifthCircuit](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheFifthCircuit/gifts).



> Many thanks to TheFifthCircuit for the awesome prompts. I hope you enjoy your fic! Thank you also to my beta whose name I will add after reveals for all the help with this story and for sharing in both the Yuletide excitement and panic along the way.
> 
> This veers off from canon just before the after the credits scene of the season one finale.
> 
> Carmilla belongs to the show's creators and VerveGirlTV. No copyright infringement is intended.

_It’s one of the few times Carmilla can remember Laura turning the camera off. Somewhere in her bones, Carmilla knows this is just the calm before the storm -- or, rather, the brief quiet in the midst of the multitude of shit storms that make up a typical semester at Silas -- but she can’t be anything but content with these moments that are theirs alone._

“So, can you be a cat whenever you want or are there rules?” Laura mutters sleepily.

“You’re really stuck on the cat thing,” Carmilla observes. She’s not offended. Laura asks with her usual genuine curious enthusiasm. There’s no indication that she’s the slightest bit disturbed that her girlfriend is capable of morphing into a feline.

Carmilla’s brain stumbles backward for a moment, stutters on the word girlfriend. She’s not sure that’s what they are but they’re definitely something. Because Laura knows Carmilla. Laura knows things no one but Mother knew for centuries, knows things Mother never knew, knows the things that sent Elle running.

And Laura’s still right here, her head resting on Carmilla’s chest, and the in and out of her breath against Carmilla’s bare skin a steady reminder of Laura’s trust in her.

She’s centuries old, it’s undignified to feel this… giddy.

“I’m not stuck on it. I’m curious. If you don’t like questions, you probably shouldn’t sleep with a journalist.” Laura looks up at Carmilla as she speaks. Her smile is almost shy and Carmilla feels it like a jolt to her bloodstream.

“I love sleeping with the journalist,” she replies. She runs her hands through Laura’s hair and Laura hums with contentment.

“Good. So?” Laura prompts.

Carmilla sighs. Laura can probably tell the exasperation is faked but Carmilla feels it necessary to at least try.

“Yes, Lois Lane, I can morph whenever I need or want to.”

“So cool. So you could do it like right now?” Laura asks.

“Is that a request?”

“No, I’m pretty partial to this form actually.” Laura trails a finger lightly down Carmilla’s side to emphasize her point. “In fact,” she continues, shifting her hand and running it along the inside of Carmilla’s thigh, “this form is kind of one of my favorite things ever.”

Carmilla responds with lighting speed, flipping them over so Laura’s beneath her.

“Glad to hear it, cupcake,” she says before leaning down and sinking her teeth into Laura’s neck.

 

_“Fellow Silas students, if you’ve not seen them yet, you should be aware that there is what appears to be a zombie horde which has just passed the student union and seems to be heading north toward the dorms,” Laura says into her camera._

“Those are definitely zombies, right?” LaFontaine asks as she looks first at Perry whose mouth is set in a firm line and then at Laura, who had run over to turn on the camera and make an announcement to those who might still be tuned into her channel.

Carmilla had stood up briefly several moments ago when LaFontaine first barged into the room with Perry in tow and called Laura and Carmilla to the window. Carmilla had looked just long enough to confirm that they were indeed actual zombies approaching and then sprawled on the bed and began silently berating herself for not packing their bags and convincing Laura to get out of this literal hellhole with her last night.

“It’s reading week. People are tired and disheveled,” Perry insists. But Carmilla can tell Perry’s heart is not as invested in the denial as it used to be. Even the most insistent disbelievers have their breaking point, this past week’s events might have been Perry’s.

“I just wanted to take my finals,” Perry whispers. “After everything else, was that too much to ask?” LaFontaine reaches out and places their hand on Perry’s back, rubbing gentle circles.

“We need a plan,” Laura and LaFontaine say in unison. Just as simultaneously they direct their eyes toward Carmilla. Were Carmilla human, she’s pretty sure she’d be fostering a headache by now; as it is she’s nursing an ever expanding loathing for this fucking school.

“Don’t look at me, kids,” she drawls. “I thought zombies were fictional until two minutes ago.”

“But, you’re a vampire,” Laura replies, emphasis on the ‘vampire’ as if the word somehow translates into ‘zombie expert.’

When Carmilla simply raises one eyebrow in response, Laura lets out a defeated sigh and returns her attention to LaFontaine.

“I know,” Laura exclaims and then rushes to the shelf that holds her DVDs.

Carmilla doesn’t take the pleasure she once did in tempering Laura’s enthusiasm, but, “I don’t think we have time for a zombie film fest, Laura. Those things may be moving slowly but they’re only thirty feet away. Besides,” she adds as an afterthought, “if their movies are anything like vampire films, they’ll be woefully inaccurate.”

Laura abandons the movies and slumps down on the bed next to Carmilla. Carmilla takes her hand almost without thinking; their fingers fold together easily in a way that calms Carmilla’s frayed nerves. She can hear Laura’s accelerated heartbeat ease ever so slightly too and, even now with a horde of zombies zeroing in on them, Carmilla feels more at peace than she has in centuries.

LaFontaine, who has settled on the floor with their back resting against the edge of Carmilla’s bed to leaf through the same library tome that told them about the light, shouts “fire!” excitedly in a way that reminds Carmilla why they’re her favorite of the three gingers.

“Ooh! The zombies are in there?” Laura asks, leaning forward to peer over LaFontaine’s shoulder at the book but not taking her hand from Carmilla’s.

“No,” LaFontaine admits, turning to eye Laura with an almost sheepish look. “Can’t find anything on them. I just thought, you know, fire always seems like a solid bet.”

Perry, who has been alphabetizing Laura’s DVDs since the discussion drew attention to them, stills.

“I’ve seen gas cans in the maintenance building. The zombies have already passed it,” she says, pulling down the blinds and peering out the window to confirm her assessment.

Laura does pull her hand from Carmilla’s now to stand and join Perry at the window.

“But, if we’re quick, we could do a wide circle around them, get into the maintenance building from the back and still run back here before they actually reach the dorms,” Laura says, her voice rising an octave.

“We should gather some other weapons too,” Carmilla adds. “As a backup plan. Given that we don’t have any research, I’d prefer to have the option to stab and or behead as well.”

“Oh, yes, beheading. Also a good strategy, Carm,” Laura says in an encouraging tone that Carmilla finds more endearing than she wants to.

“Okay,” Laura instructs, “Perry and Carmilla, you’re on fire duty. LaFontaine and I will handle sharp and stabby.”

“But, I…” Carmilla finds the idea of being separated from Laura unpleasant.

“Perry knows exactly where the gas cans are and, since LaFontaine and I can probably gather weapons in this building and the neighboring dorms, she’ll be getting closest to the zombies,” Laura reasons, cutting off Carmilla’s objection.

“If Perry runs into trouble, I want her with someone extra lethal.” Laura steps closer to Carmilla with each word until they’re sharing each other’s space. “That’s you,” she clarifies before standing on her tiptoes to give Carmilla a quick kiss.

“Whatever you say, General Hollis,” Carmilla agrees, tossing a mock-salute Laura’s way before heading for the door.

 

_They're three days into the fight with the zombies now. Carmilla stares at the camera from her spot on the bed. The ever-present green light reminds her it’s still recording and broadcasting. She has nothing to say to the masses, though. Instead she tugs the end of a loose yellow thread on the pillow that rests on her lap. Two more minutes to Laura’s appointed ‘if I’m not back by’ time and then Carmilla goes hunting for Laura and anything or anyone standing between them._

A loud thud in the doorway pulls Carmilla out of her thoughts and, with her attention firmly back in reality, she takes in Laura's scent and the familiar rhythm of Laura's blood before she turns to face her.

Laura is proudly carting several javelins. LaFontaine is nowhere to be seen but judging from the satisfied grin on Laura’s face, wherever they are, they’re fine.

“LaF and Perry are just across the hall,” Laura offers. “They’re taking stock in the weapons room.”

The weapons room is a janitor’s closet which Perry has commandeered. Carmilla can’t imagine much stock taking is necessary by this point. On day one of the fight, just after they'd beat back the zombies with an aggressive fire attack, Perry created an elaborate color-coded spreadsheet to track every weapon and supply in and out. She's been characteristically meticulous about it ever since.

Laura is currently trying to wriggle her way through their doorway. The javelins, which have to be at least two feet taller than Laura herself, are getting stuck on the doorframe each time Laura tries to duck through.

Her enthusiasm not dampened by her current struggle, Laura exclaims, “We can stab the creepy rotting corpses from a distance! How’s your throwing arm?”

What Carmilla thinks is ‘I love her.’ And she realize there hasn’t been a question mark after that sentiment, no hint of regret, for a very long time.

What Carmilla says is, “My aim is probably better than yours, cupcake.”

“I wouldn’t count on it. I did track and field in high school. I have experience with these babies,” Laura replies nodding toward the javelins packed on her back as she finally manages to make it through the door. “Your freakish vampire strength will only get you so far. I have training.”

Carmilla could dispute the fact. Her freakish vampire strength can get her pretty damn far. But instead she closes the distance between them in a flash.

“Hey,” Laura says, almost as if she’s about to protest the show of speed. Instead she pauses, her face now just inches from Carmilla’s. Laura bites her lower lip gently and Carmilla can hear Laura’s heart rate speed up, feel the pull of her racing blood. It tugs her forward until her lips are on Laura’s and her hands are settling against Laura’s back pulling her closer.

Always, Carmilla wants her closer.

The javelins, which had apparently come loose in Laura’s struggle with the doorframe, clatter to the ground and roll on the floor. Carmilla tightens her grip on Laura to assure herself the other woman won’t slip.

Laura, for her part, seems oblivious. Carmilla feels rather than hears Laura’s hum of contentment against her lips.

And Carmilla swears she can feel her fingers warming where they rest against against Laura’s back. Laura is heat and comfort and so many things Carmilla never thought she’d find.

Carmilla lets her teeth graze Laura’s lower lip and it’s an exercise in control not to bite down but the low moan Laura lets out in response is reward enough.

There’s another -- much more unwelcome -- sound from the doorway, a throat clearing. It’s quiet at first but louder after Carmilla and Laura have done their best to ignore it for a few seconds.

Carmilla reluctantly pulls herself from Laura and turns to the doorway where LaFontaine stands. They’re grinning sheepishly but Carmilla can also see their body is tense. It snaps her out of her haze but she keeps her hand centered on the small of Laura’s back even as she turns her full attention to LaFontaine.

“Sorry to ummm…” they gesture at Laura and Carmilla helplessly and both Laura and Carmilla nod in unison in acceptance of the understood apology. “But there’s a group of five zombies and they’ve made it past the perimeter defenses. They’re already on the second floor.”

The room they’re standing in now is on the fifth floor.

“Shit,” Carmilla mutters.

“Time to test the javelins,” Laura exclaims.

“I don’t know that the javelins are the best for indoor combat, sweet cheeks.” Carmilla responds, punctuating the observation by sliding the hand resting on Laura’s back just a little lower and giving a light smack.

“What? Do not!” Laura protests, turning slightly to slap Carmilla’s hand away. But Carmilla sees the slight upward curl of Laura’s lip, the bright blush on her cheeks.

“Fine,” Laura continues, “You’re probably right. No javelins… for now,” she emphasizes the last two words as if soliciting a promise she’ll get to impale zombies with her recently procured track and field equipment at some point in the near future.

“Fire, again?” LaFontaine offers, sounding almost hopeful. Carmilla has to admit that toasting the zombie hordes the other day had proved mildly entertaining.

“Blades,” comes Perry’s no-nonsense voice from the hallway as she appears next to LaFontaine in the doorway. Her hair is slightly disheveled but her stance is firm and she holds an impressive array of bladed weaponry in her hands. “This is one of our last strongholds. I will not have you burning it down.”

“Deal, as long as I get the axe,” LaFontaine agrees, reaching for the weapon in question.

Perry hands a sword each to Carmilla and Laura, keeping a scythe for herself. Carmilla tests the weight of the sword in her hand with a few experimental jabs and finds it satisfactory.

Perry tilts her head, evidently listening to something in the headset she wears in her right ear.

“What are our assignments, Danny?” she inquires into her headset. After listening for a few moments, she turns her focus to the group. “We’re on,” she says. “LaF, you and I are down one floor in the east stairwell. You two,” she says gesturing at Carmilla and Laura, “are west stairwell, also on the fourth floor.”

“Those zombies are going to be so dead,” Laura growls as she and Carmilla head for the door. “More dead,” she clarifies. “Deader. As in for real. Not coming back.”

“Got you, cupcake.” Carmilla assures as Laura reaches back to grab her hand, pulling her in the direction of the west stairs.

Carmilla will kill every zombie on this planet if it means keeping this even a second longer.

 

_“So,” Laura tells the camera. “No more zombies. Well, we're pretty sure.” She looks behind her at the rest of the crew – Carmilla, LaFontaine, Perry, Danny, and Kirsch have all found spaces on beds and chairs. “There are at least,” Laura clarifies returning her attention to the camera, “significantly fewer zombies. If you happen to run into any stragglers, both fire and beheading work spectacularly.”_

_Perry stands and crosses the room so she's just behind Laura. “If you find yourself in need of weaponry, you can check some out of the storeroom on the fifth floor of our dorm. Laura, can you put up the link the the Google Doc?”_

_Laura's hands fly over the keys and in a few seconds she announces to the camera, “The link you are now seeing at the bottom of your feed is Perry's excellently organized inventory of weaponry.”_

_Perry beams at Laura's compliment and adds, “Please also review the checkout procedures before you arrive at the storeroom. We do require ID and a few tests to ensure you're alive...”_

_Carmilla growls._

_Perry looks back apologetically. “Or a... uh... friendly..._

_Danny clears her throat in apparent response to the word 'friendly.'_

_“... or a not currently threatening,” Perry corrects, “unalive person before you will be allowed to checkout any weapons.”_

With the announcement done to both Laura and Perry's satisfaction, Laura vacates the chair in front of the computer in favor of wriggling her way into a spot next to Carmilla on her bed. She leans her head against Carmilla's shoulder and lets out a long breath.

“We made it, you guys,” Laura says softly.

“Again,” says LaFontaine.

Perry has been rustling around in the mini fridge and is pouring everyone drinks. Carmilla offers her a half smile when Perry hands her both a mug and her soy milk container filled with blood without a hint of judgment.

Once the drinks are handed out, Perry raises her glass. “To another hard-fought victory,” she toasts.

“To flamethrowers,” LaFontaine adds.

“To the alliance between the Zetas and the Summer Society,” says Danny, nudging Kirsch with her shoulder as she speaks.

“To lady-bros,” Kirsch responds, clinking his glass against Danny's.

“To the best friends a girl could have,” Laura announces. And then she’s nudging Carmilla with her shoulder and eyeing her expectantly.

With an exaggerated sigh, Carmilla raises her mug as well. “To an army which, though not the most technically proficient…” she casts her eyes toward the bandage on Kirsch’s forehead which illustrates her point, “... is the bravest I’ve ever had the pleasure to battle beside.”

The gingers and Kirsch look momentarily stunned but recover quickly and raise their glasses to drink. Laura grabs Carmilla’s free hand and squeezes it lightly then turns her head in order to kiss Carmilla on the cheek.

As long as she’s ended up entangled with a bunch of humans, Carmilla supposes it’s for the best these are the ones.

(But what she wouldn’t give to get all of them but Laura out of there and obtain a more secure lock for the door.)


End file.
